Tapping the engines of cellular electrochemistry and forces of evolution

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have a unique resource in the form of the Center for Biomolecular Condensates at the McKelvey School of Engineering, which draws scientists from around the world to study the biochemical reactions of condensates, constantly shifting, membrane-less organelles that govern how a cell functions. Center Director Rohit Pappu, the Gene K. Beare Distinguished Professor, has spent his career defining and outlining the rules governing these "intrinsically disordered proteins" to develop medical treatments for cancers or dementias. But new medicine is not the only treasure to uncover in condensate research.